Latest Economic Data Paints Mixed Picture

A rundown of the news making headlines in and around China:

Economic data: A tranche of new data from China’s central government painted a mixed picture of the country’s economic performance in November. The growth in value-added industrial production beat expectations as stimulus policies had an impact, increasing 5.4% year-on-year last month. However, fixed-asset investment from January to November grew 3.3% compared with the same period in 2023, down 0.1 percentage points from the first 10 months and falling short of expectations. Retail sales of consumer goods likewise came in under expectations, rising 3% year-on-year last month, which marked a 1.8-percentage-point decline from October.